(2) Kentucky vs. (6) Delaware

This is what Wildcats’ coach Matthew Mitchell and his staff have been working on for the past 48 hours. They’ve watched film, scripted defensive strategies and will try to make things as difficult as possible for one of the nation’s most dynamic players.

“I don’t know if there’s another person like Elena,” Mitchell said Friday as his Wildcats, the Bridgeport Regional’s No. 2 seed, prepared for their matchup against the sixth-seeded Blue Hens today at noon (ESPN) at the Webster Bank Arena. “What makes her so unique is her versatility and her ability with her size (6 feet 5) to impact the game in different areas of the court.”

Mitchell compared her versatility to Notre Dame’s Skylar Diggins, and her dominance and game-altering inside presence to Baylor’s Brittney Griner.

“With Elena, you have to be ready for a variety of things,” he said, “ so I don’t know if there’s a player of her size that can handle the basketball and shoot the basketball. She’s a unique player.”

Delle Donne has scored 33 points in each of the Blue Hens’ two NCAA Tournament games. Delaware had to rally from double-digit, second-half deficits in each to make the Sweet 16 for the first time in program history.

The Blue Hens’ ability to come back will be a serious test for Mitchell’s “40 minutes of dread” defensive philosophy that has transformed the Wildcats over the past four seasons.

“We just can’t stop. We just can’t look at the scoreboard and settle,” said junior center DeNesha Stallworth, who along with junior forward Samarie Walker will have the task of guarding Delle Donne. “I think we definitely have to play a full 40 minutes to beat them, especially if they’re making 20-point comebacks. We have to stay focused for 40 minutes.”

“I think it’s a mistake to just say that’s the only thing you need to do to beat Delaware,” Mitchell said of Delle Donne. “I think they have an outstanding team. I think the reason they’re playing so well is her teammates know how to play with her. They do a great job of getting her the ball, so it’s a great challenge to try and keep the ball out her hands, and I think that’s where we’ll start.”

And Plan B?

“We’re going to try to make it into a fast game, an up-tempo game and what we always do is try to make it very difficult for players to catch the basketball in a comfort zone,” Mitchell said. “The challenge with Elena is that she’s very comfortable in a lot of sports on the floor, so that makes the job a little tougher.”